Frankenstein (1931)

It was time for me to check out another one of the classic monster movies, another goal of mine being to watch them all. Frankenstein seemed to be a great place to start. I had read the novel in high school but my memory of it is non-existent. Therefore I can't say how accurate this movie is in adapting the book, but I can say it's a damn solid movie and it's very easy to tell why it's considered a classic.

The thing that struck me the most of this movie is how much of it is iconic. This is the movie that invented the look of Frankenstein that everyone knows to this day. It's what made him a classic monster. On top of that you have the hunchbacked Igor assistant (which I don't think had been featured in a movie before this one), the townspeople rioting with their torches and pitchforks, and just about every other scene in this movie. Every second represents some famous moment that has been recreated in many other forms over the years.

Another thing that surprised me is how damn agile Frankenstein is. I always imagined him as a slow, lumbering figure...arms stretched out in front of him and moving pretty much how a zombie would. Turns out that's not the case at all. This sum bitch can move, and he can fight too. He's actually a really great character and no matter what happens or what he does, you can't help but root for the poor guy/thing.

The movie is very short and moves along at a lightning fast pace. It really is over before you know it. There's not a whole lot more that I can say about it that would be ground-breaking or anything. Everyone knows the story and even if you don't think you do, you will immediately recognize almost all of the imagery in the movie. It was a great movie and I definitely plan on adding it to my DVD collection sometime soon.

8.5/10